St. Patrick

Hail, glorious Saint Patrick, dear saint of our Isle

On us thy poor children bestow a sweet smile

And now thou art high in thy mansions above

On Erin's green valleys, look down in thy love.

Today marks the feast day of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. It is a celebration which is marked throughout the world, when the Shamrock is worn, and the Green is on display.

Much of St. Patrick's life is the stuff of legend, but there are two surviving letters written by him in Latin, which give an insight into his life and his character - the Confession/Declaration (Confessio) and the Letter to Coroticus which tell of his early years, his faith, and his missionary life in Ireland as a bishop.


Early Years
He was born into a Christian family in Britain in approximately 390 AD. The family were of the Roman official class and were materially comfortable. When he was 16, he was captured and brought to Ireland as a slave, where his own faith was strongly tested. Coming from such a comfortable background, he now faced life threatening situations, isolation and hardship. It was in this context, where he worked for some time as a shepherd and faced his despair and aloneness, that his prayer life deepened and his faith matured. He came to know that God was present.

My faith grew stronger and my zeal so intense that in the course of a single day I would say as many as a hundred prayers and almost as many in the night. This I did even when I was in the woods and on the mountains. Even in times of snow or frost or rain I would rise before dawn to pray.

St. Patrick, The Confession

After 6 years, he heard a voice telling him he would soon go home, and this prompted him to make an attempt to escape from his master. He fled 200 miles to the coast and was eventually allowed to board a trading ship bound for Europe. Enduring more hardship, hunger and captivity, he finally made it home to his family in Britain. Profoundly affected by his experience, he decided to further deepen his faith and knowledge by embarking on a period of study of Christianity. It is believed he studied primarily in France, and was ordained by St. Germanus of Auxerre. His writings show his great understanding of the Bible and his familiarity with the earliest Fathers of the Church.

Responding to another vision where he heard "the voice of the Irish" calling him to them, St. Patrick returned to Ireland in approximately 432 AD to help spread the Christian faith. He undoubtedly received much resistance initially and was again held captive at times, but The Confession depicts a time of great conversion when St. Patrick baptised thousands of people, and ordained many priests. He felt this was his true vocation, and was filled with enthusiasm and energy to share his faith with the people of Ireland.


Legends
Irish folklore tells how St. Patrick used the three leaves of the Shamrock plant to explain the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit - three persons in one God. The Shamrock remains an important symbol of St. Patrick and Ireland to this day.

Legend also tells how St. Patrick banished the snakes from the island, chasing them into the sea with his staff after they assailed him during a 40-day fast he was undertaking on top of a hill. This may be more symbolic than literal, associating St. Patrick with driving out the old, pagan ways out of Ireland and heralding in a new faith. It is also believed that it was more a merging of the valuable old Irish traditional and cultural beliefs with his teaching which moved forward into this new Christian faith.

Another tale describes whenever Patrick was teaching about Christianity, he would thrust his ash walking stick into the ground. On one spot at Aspatria (ash of Patrick), it is told that it took a long time to convince the people, that his ash stick had taken root before he had firmly planted his message. 

Later Years
After nearly thirty years of Evangelism, he died on 17 March 461, and according to tradition, was buried at Downpatrick. His life as a missionary was very successful. He endured constant danger, threats and further times of captivity, but saw "the flock of the Lord in Ireland growing splendidly with the greatest care" (The Confession). He had a deep knowing that God was working through him, guiding and protecting him, and this made him trust completely in his mission without worry for his safety. He had a love and belief in his vocation, and he offers an example to us of a grace-filled life. Patrick has endured as the principal champion of Irish Christianity and is held in great esteem in the Irish Church, and in the hearts of the Irish people. Relics of St. Patrick, including his Bell, are held at the National Museum of Ireland.

As a cultural day, St. Patricks Day is celebrated by the Irish and any other enthusiastic nationality wishing to don the Green for the day. Parades are being held in the major cities across the world, wherever the Irish have replanted themselves over many past generations. From the days of the famine in the 1840s, millions of Irish either chose or were forced to survive elsewhere in the world, bringing their Irishness with them, and hopefully managing to embody it as they welcomed the new cultures of their chosen destinations. On this day, we send our love to our friends and family overseas, we wear our Shamrock, we cheer at our parades, and we count our blessings for each other.

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh!

Image of St. Patrick, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

St. Brigid

Feast of St. Brigid 1 February

The 1^st of February marks the Feast day of St. Brigid, also spelled Bridget, Bridgit or Bríd. She is the patroness of Ireland and was also known as Mary of the Gael. The daughter of a pagan chieftain from the province of Leinster, she was born into slavery as her mother was a servant of the chieftain. After a period of time being fostered, she returned to live as a servant to her father around the age of 10. St. Brigid became known for her strength of character, holiness, protection and generosity to the poor and sick, frustrating her father by giving away his food and home provisions to the poor and hungry who called to their home for help. It is thought that he became so frustrated with her that he carried her in a chariot to the King of Leinster to try and sell her, and as she waited in the chariot, a beggar approached her looking for help. She immediately gave him her father's jewelled sword to be used as barter for food. The King, in recognising her genuine sense of charity and holiness, granted her her freedom. Later, attempts by her father to find her a marriage partner failed as she dedicated herself in service to God and to the poor.

She lived from approximately AD455 - AD525, and ranks alongside St. Patrick and St. Columcille (or St. Columba) as some of the earliest and most influential saints. Starting with 7 other postulants, it is thought she first approached St. Maccaille for direction, and under his guidance, began her first novitiate. They made their final profession with St. Mel of Ardagh. She founded numerous convents throughout Ireland, the most famous being a monastery for both monks and nuns in Kildare.

She is held with great affection in Ireland, particularly in rural areas, where her affinity with the earth and healing finds devotion among farmers, mothers and healers. Having grown up in pre-Christian pagan times, St. Brigid brought forward with her many of the ancient traditions, customs and practices into her new Christian faith. She believed in healing wells, the symbolism of fire and Imbolc, the Celtic celebration of the start of spring. Tradition still finds people hanging a ribbon or scarf outside on St. Brigid's Eve, as it was known to become blessed and imbued with the healing properties of St. Brigid for the head, throat, ears and neck. She is associated in folklore with a white red-eared cow, and is said to visit on 1^st February to bless the people, the land, and the livestock.

There are many legends and healing miracles associated with her, including her pleading with the King of Leinster for land to build her convent in Kildare. Though hesitant, he finally agreed to offer her enough land to cover her cloak, upon which four of her Sisters each took hold of a corner of the cloak and began running in the four directions of the compass, the cloak expanding as they ran. On seeing this, the King relented and offered her as much land as was needed for the convent.

Early February is known in the Celtic calendar as Imbolc, the start of Spring. I have often felt this is a great season of renewal. While the frost and snow can still be solid on the ground, there is a sense that the soil is warming up, bulbs are shooting up through the earth, and a promise of spring is present. It is characterised by snowdrops, the planning of spring farming schedules and vegetable seedlings. The quality of light has changed. It is becoming more powerful, with the sun rising higher in the sky, and the light extending longer into the day. It is a time of progress and cooperation. It is a time of prayer for the year ahead. Even when I lived in the Southern Hemisphere, late February marked the end of oppressive heat and humidity, and a turning point into cooler, more comfortable conditions. It is possible to move forward.

When I pray to St. Brigid during this season, I sense a feisty, wise woman with tremendous courage to show compassion and generosity and to fight for the poor and marginalised, in her practical devotion to God. She had tremendous faith, and it is thought that she used the rushes to make a cross to teach people about Christianity. One legend tells how St. Brigid was called to visit a dying pagan chieftain. As she sat near his bed, she picked up some rushes from the floor and began to weave a Cross. Though delirious, he calmed and asked her what she was doing and, in explaining, she told him about Christ and the meaning of the Cross. He was deeply impacted by her and what she taught, and asked to be baptised on his deathbed.

St. Brigid's Cross

Traditionally, a new St. Brigid's Cross is made on 1^st February and hung inside the house over the entrance door to replace the one from the previous year. The cross acts as a blessing to all who enter the house, and as a prayer of protection over the occupants. In pagan rituals, it was also known to protect the house from fire.

In spite of many legends and folklore surrounding her, it is certainly true that she founded a number of convents, held herself in tireless service to the poor, and educated and inspired many people to Christianity. There is still a strong Brigidine community of religious present in Ireland, particularly in Leinster, and in the area surrounding Kildare. She is venerated not only in Ireland, but in Britain and in many parts of Europe. St. Brigid's Well is located on the site of her original monastery in Kildare, and still acts as a devotional and pilgrimage site today. There are 5 prayer stones thought to symbolise St. Brigid's vocation - the Earth/Land, Welcome for the Poor, Prayerfulness/Peacefulness, Compassion, and Holiness/Contemplation. The well itself is held in high regard as one of Ireland's healing wells.

St. Brigid's Well, Kildare

Image of St. Brigid courtesy of Ann MacDuff from “The Little Book of Celtic Saints”

Image of St. Brigid's Cross courtesy en.wikipedia.org
Image of St. Brigid's Well courtesy www.kildare.ie